2023-2024

Interview with Donna Dees

by 28jackm

On January 30th, my group interviewed Donna Dees. Donna Dees is an activist for gun control and she talked to us about her experience, fighting for stricter gun laws and starting the Million Mom March. The Million Mom March was a march on the Capitol that took place on Mother’s Day, 2000. The Million Mom March was a huge success and it helped bring attention to weak gun policies that needed to be reworked. Donna was one of the best interviewees due to her extensive knowledge of gun violence and the history of activism. She shared with us many statistics like how 76% of school shooters acquire a gun from their household or from a relative. Donna Dees now lives in New Orleans and she is still a huge activist for gun control. She is inspirational and we learned plenty.

by 28gabriellaf

For this interview, we spoke to Beth Sousa, the senior policy and strategy advisor at Planned Parenthood. This organization’s main goal is to ensure all people have access to the care and resources they need to make informed decisions about their own bodies. Planned Parenthood advocates for women’s rights by providing funding, making ballot measures, and getting more people to vote. During our interview, Sousa explained how our democracy plays a huge role on the topic of abortion rights. “A lot of it is about our democracy right now. Ballots are important tools,” she said. “There’s a lot to do… making sure everyone votes.” When people fill out these ballot measures, it gives them a say on crucial issues and how we can solve them. These are very important because they give citizens a chance to advocate for their rights and justices.

by 28gabriellaf

For this interview, we spoke to Ana Oliveria, the CEO of the New York Women’s Foundation. The organization’s main goal is to ensure everyone their right to reproductive healthcare. The New York Women’s Foundation advocates for women’s rights by bringing together other advocates and providing funding for the women who need support. During our interview, Oliveria explained the importance of having control over our bodies. “Our body is our terrain,” she said. “We live in the world we create. When we don’t use that power, others shape the world for us.” Oliveria also spoke about how many people see the problem, and maybe even see the solution, but no one is really taking action.

by 28oliviaw

We met with a Former D1 Soccer player named Carly Wetzel. She went to University Of North Carolina and was a midfielder on the soccer team. She talked to us about a foundation she is in called Voice in Sport Foundation, they work on strengthening title 9 for young girls. We learned about experience with her and how they hand me down uniforms that are way too big for them. We learned about how lots of girls quit the sport they love because they were abused by their coach. Carly stressed to us how important it is that the sport you play gives you confidence and does not knock you down. She also played oversees and explaing that playing oversees also impacter her mentel health are her teamates as well, she also noticed that she was treadted much better overseas and in urope then in the U.S. This interview was very informative and helpful.

by Ava Bee Masterson

My group and I met with the LREI High School Feminist Club on February 16, 2024. The girls we met with discussed with us how social media has affected them, and how they grew up surrounded by it. We got to hear different perspectives on the matter, and generally, everyone agreed that they had felt insecure about themselves at one point in their lives. It was awesome to be able to relate and communicate with them and be able to gain so much first-hand information about how they have interacted with social media.
It was truly a pleasure, being able to collect data about what we’re really trying to prove. They were so welcoming and I felt comfortable asking what I needed to there. I appreciate them taking time out of their day for us, thank you.

by Kian Jordan

For our social justice project fieldwork, the two climate justice social justice groups interviewed Keanu Arpels-Josiah, a senior at the LREI high school, who participates in local climate justice protests. He is also in the Fridays For Future NYC group, and the Sunrise Movement NYC group. We met in the LREI high school library at the end of the day, when it was emptying out. He talked a lot about climate activism in NYC.

One of the things he said that I found most interesting was that climate change will only be solved at a political level, once we have cut 100% of fossil emissions, no matter how much recycling and raising awareness we do. I found this interesting because it opened my eyes to get more involved in the scene. For example, join large groups, sign petitions, and go to protests.

He also said that while climate change’s effects are not so apparent within the walls of major cities, poorer parts of the world are already feeling its effects in negative ways. If the owners of major fossil fuel companies keep greeding their money and monopoly, civilization could collapse faster than we could see coming. The global north is most responsible for emissions emitted, and the global south is feeling the consequences the most.

by 28oliviag

On Wednesday, Mila, Gabriella, and I met with Beth Sousa, the Senior Policy and Strategy Advisor at PlannedParenthood’s international office in New York. Sousa told us about the actions PlannedParenthood is taking to make sure reproductive healthcare is accessible and available in New York and around the US. Sousa also explained how legislation plays a huge part in how PlannedParenthood challenges abortion bans.

PlannedParenthood is an organization that works to expand access to reproductive and gender affirming healthcare across America and internationally. The organization consists of international offices, where Sousa works, and affiliate programs that provide resources in individual communities. The affiliate programs run health centers to provide care around America. The international offices work to challenge legislation, as well as support affiliates in any way they can. The organization has been preparing for the overturning of Roe v. Wade since 2017. PlannedParenthood always knew that abortion laws were very fragile and that Roe would one day be overturned. In an effort to ease the damage of abortion bans they tried to predict which states would most likely ban abortion. PlannedParenthood got ready for the abortion bans and restrictions that might one day appear in those states by creating patient navigation services. Patient navigation services help people find the closest reproductive healthcare center outside of their state, and help them with travel expenses.

In our interview Sousa, who studied law, told us about the huge part democracy plays in achieving reproductive justice. We learned that ballot measures are a great way to change state abortion laws. Ballot measures are questions at the end of a state ballot where you can vote on important issues. Ballot measures can be submitted by citizens, so PlannedParenthood tries to take advantage of ballot measures to take down abortion bans. Ballot measures make it possible to change state amendments, and are one of the many ways people can fight for reproductive rights. Sousa told us that some of the other ways people can be part of the fight for abortion rights include joining affiliate programs, political work, and just being aware of the issue.

Some of the most important stories are the ones that are not being brought to light. PlannedParenthood is giving voices to those who do not have a voice. Our interview with Beth Sousa was extremely informative. It was very interesting to learn about Planned Parenthood’s trailblazing work.

by Cali Greenspun

On Janruary 31st, 2024, we met with LREI alumni Naomi Picayo. Naomi shared many experiences and struggles through her journey playing high school volleyball and basketball and college basketball. While she shared many significant struggles, one really stood out to me. From a young age, Naomi played basketball on a co-ed youth club team, but she was the only girl; and when she was around 8 years old, she experienced her first exposure to direct discrimination. Her and her guy friends were playing basketball in the park one day, and there were two people left to get picked for teams. Naomi happened to get picked last and was told: “sorry, we picked him because your a girl, and girls aren’t as good as boys at basketball.” This came as a shock to both me and her at that age. From then on, Naomi continued to push herself and work hard to be better than all the boys at basketball; and now, she has an award sitting in the Thomson Gym trophy case for most points scored in basketball in LREI history.

by Juju Pepe

Elias and I decided to do a beach cleanup for one of our fieldwork. We thought it was a good hands on fieldwork that would support our cause, and we would also learn a lot from. When figuring out where we should go for the beach cleanup, we ended up deciding to go to a nearby beach called Rock-away beach. Rock-away beach is a local beach that is only an hour away from Manhattan on a boat. We also decided to go on Sunday for a few hours, to get the best experience.

When it was finally time for the trip, I met Elias and his mother (Lizzy) at 10:00 am at pier 11 and we took the boat to Rock-away beach. This boat ride took us about an hour before we got to Rock-away. We exited the boat and started walking to the beach. It wasn’t a long walk, it was about 5 minutes, but it was enough for us to get in the spirit of walking and picking up trash. When we got to the beach we started picking up trash with grabbers. We were finding a lot of trash most of them being plastic bags, but there were many other things. There were many objects but there were a few that I found to be insane: a tire, a toilet, a tampon applicator, a plastic glove, a hand warmer, and many more. These just prove that we are wasting a great amount of plastic that we should not be wasting. We even inspired two people to clean up and pick up trash which felt heartwarming. We did this for about two hours then had a snack break and went back to the boat. We rode back and went our separate ways.

This experience was eye opening and led me to learn a few things. I learned that my topic of plastic pollution is often ignored. For example everyone sees a piece of trash, but only a small few actually pick it up. People are ignoring plastic pollution and just hoping that it will solve itself, but it won’t, it will just keep getting worse and worse. During the process Elias said “It feels like we are barely making a dent” which really got me thinking. He was right that we were barely pitching in but it’s still good that we are even doing this in the first place. When we all only make a small dent then we will have all done so much. This applies to activism and how we need to come together to actually make a DENT in society’s problems. This can be achieved by just helping out a little, because when you help out a little, you will inspire others, who will inspire others, who will inspire others, this keeps going on and on which makes a great difference. To conclude we need to come together and fix what we have done with the plastics

by Stephanie Greenstein

On February 14th, 2024, me and my partner Misha Shtender met with Stefanie Singer, The head educational director of the Anti-Defamation League

During our interview with Stefanie, We were fortunate to learn more about the Anti-Defamation League and what they do. We were also lucky enough to learn specifically about what Stefanie specializes in and how she contributes to her company. Stefanie specializes in providing educational plans and curriculums for schools. These curriculums are inspired by her team’s mission, to create a more just society by incorporating anti-bias and Anti-Semitism into their programs. By bringing in anti-bias programs to schools, It not only teaches children that acts of Anti-Semitism are wrong, but also educates them to not engage in acts of Anti-Semitism.

Overall, It was an absolutely wonderful experience to meet with Stefanie and we were able to learn so much new information about Anti-Semitism in schools and in social media.

by 28sabinak

On February 8th me and my social justice group went to the Little Shop of Kindness which is a volunteer organization that helps provide all kinds of things for refugees. While we were there we started off by organizing and sorting out different articles of clothing. After that we then washed fruit and placed them in baskets for the refugees and or migrants who came in to just take whenever. The majority of people who came in while we were there only spoke Spanish so there were translators there to help out. Ilze, the head of the Little Shop of Kindness mentioned to us how one of the customers that used to come in all the time recently got asylum after a year. That really put into perspective for us how hard it can be for people to gain asylum.

We were able to help out one person, she was a mother of 2 shopping for her children and husband. She only spoke Spanish so we occasionally had to get help from other volunteers who spoke Spanish. It felt very fulfilling to help out someone else and we all plan to go back again to help others.

by Mikhaella O. Joyce Ibe

On the 30th of January, me and my group went to Brooklyn with our chaperone Susannah to the Haitian Women for Haitian Refugee organization. We went to meet with Ninaj Raoul the Executive Director and her team to discuss and ask questions about what their organization provides and the stories of these refugees she works with. She was very welcoming and we learned lots about our topic. Here’s what we learned.

According to Ninaj, many refugees are being put into hotels, churches, and homeless shelters. A lot of them are forced to also stay in poor conditions, such as camps in undesignated areas. They unfortunately do not have lots of transportation as well, sometimes only one bus being the source of getting from one place to another. Asylum seekers also do not have high chances in achieving asylum, which if they are denied it might lead to deportation. Thankfully, Ninaj and her team work hard to help out refugees, asylum seekers and immigrants all alike, struggling to enter and live in the United States.

by Cameron Fletcher

Me and my piers in the Nuclear Proliferation justice group recently had an interview with Daniel Prins. Daniel Prins is a former member of the United Nations and represented the Netherlands. He gave us a lot of insight as to how countries are being asked to stop using weapons and how we could end them. One of the biggest points he made was that it’s hard for countries to drop their weapons because of the fact that other countries have them. This fear of other nations is what holds back the disarmament of nuclear weapons. We also learned that some countries have agreed to disarm but there has never been a date and thus, no progress. Overall our interview was very informative and we are glad to have spoken with Daniel Prins.

by Misha Shtender

On Friday, February 2rd 2024, My social justice group interviewed Erica LaManga. She is one of the middle school Math Teachers and one of the leaders of the Jewish Affinity Group (JAG). We asked if she had ever experienced
Anti-Semitism in the workplace. She went on to say that she hasn’t experienced direct Anti-Semitism in the workplace but told a story about how in the old school that she taught, some students drew Swastikas (卐) in the school bathrooms. A Swastika (卐) was the emblem of the German Nazi Party. Even though this wasn’t direct Anti-Semitism towards Erica, she went on to talk about how it affected her and her Jewish colleagues. She fortunately has not experienced Anti-Semitism at LREI or had any kid come to her about an Anti-Semetic issue.

-Misha Shtender

by Stephanie Greenstein

On February 2nd, 2024, me and my partner Misha Shtender met with Erica Lamagna, A math teacher and a leader of the Jewish affinity group at LREI.

During our meeting with her, we learned about her experiences with Anti-Semitism in the workplace and with her students. We also discussed with her, her opinion about how and if Anti-Semitism specifically on social media affects her students and how they react and understand these serious attacks. In our interview, we were able to learn more about Erica’s experiences at different schools. She shared a story of a young child in elementary school drawing a Swastika, an Emblem that was used for the German Nazi group in an attempt to attack and harm the Jewish students.

Fortunately, Erica herself has never experienced acts of antisemitism in the workplace or with her students, But it was still important and educational to hear her story.

by Elias Markee-Ratner

Yesterday, my group member Juju came with me and my mom on an adventure to the Rockaways in an attempt to do our own beach cleanup. Armed with long metal grabbers, heavy-duty gloves, and garbage bags, we stepped onto the Rockaway Ferry at Pier 11 in Wall Street.

I have to say, the ferry ride may have been my favorite part of the trip. We had gorgeous conditions and the water was extremely calm. It was amazing to see so much of New York by ferry! We passed between the Statue of Liberty and Governors Island on the way out and spotted some oil tankers and a garbage barge that was loaded with trash. I could totally see how this is such a major cause of pollution: there was a lot of trash just barely hanging onto the boat and it seemed like plenty of garbage could fall into the water on a windy day.

We stopped briefly at Brooklyn Army Terminal to pick up more passengers and enjoyed amazing views as we passed under the Verrazano Bridge and, eventually, Coney Island. When we finally reached the Rockaways and got off the boat, we made our way to the beach and, along the way, walked right by a sewage treatment plant! It was so close to the water and it made me curious about how thoroughly the water was being cleaned and what was being done with the waste (and how that affects the community), especially since it was so close to the water’s edge. This is definitely something I’m interested in doing more research on (and possibly visiting a plant?).

When we reached the beach, it didn’t take us long to begin finding trash. The vast majority seemed to be plastic bags (many of which were shredded and appeared to have been in the ocean for an extremely long time) and smaller fragments, but we found a huge amount of variety as we went. We ended up walking along the wrack line of the beach, which seemed to have a lot of plastic, picking up garbage as we went. We didn’t cover too much territory (and I’m sure we only found a small amount of the total garbage in the area we covered), but we managed to completely fill two whole garbage bags (and part of a third) with trash in two hours. It was a great feeling to know that we were making a difference (and two people we ran into said we inspired them to come back and do their own beach cleanups), however small and insignificant it may seem.

This trip definitely made me think a lot about how worthwhile a beach cleanup is. The truth is that, however hard we try, our own individual actions will not make much of a difference, but they can inspire more people to do the same and our combined actions can make a greater difference. In any case, by picking up this trash, we probably saved at least a few animals and made a community’s space just a bit cleaner and safer. I was really surprised by how much I enjoyed the cleanup and how simple it was. I definitely want to do one again and it was empowering to know I can do something about pollution, even if the sheer amount of trash was depressing and heartbreaking.

After our cleanup, we properly disposed of the trash and enjoyed another lovely ferry ride home, spotting a variety of birds and a Harbor Seal (as well as a massive cruise ship).

Below is a (somewhat) complete list of the trash we found:
Bit of a sandcastle cup, Bottle caps, plastic bags, BIC lighters, ribbon (fabric), surgical masks, Welch’s candy, tampon applicators, straw, top of heroin syringe, snickers wrapper, napkins, wrappers, soda cans, aluminum foil, water bottles, towels, fishing line, water bottle with barnacles growing on it, winter hats, foam insulation, graham cracker wrapper, plastic syringe, bits of plastic fencing, McDonald’s cup, Payday wrapper, Gatorade bottles, inside of pen, Bakers Delight wrapper, heavy-duty plastic glove, Arizona iced tea wrapper, Lam’s Snacks plantain chips, Lean Body power drink, orange toy shovel head, plastic dolphin toy, plastic tube/hose with valve, hand warmer, Modelo beer can, Kinder Joy egg, Reese’s wrappers, Lay’s chip bag, sunglasses, Mini brand, Heineken bottles, lip balm, turd bags, Doritos wrapper, blue raspberry Jolly Rancher wrapper, tattered blue balloon, sunglasses without arms, plastic bullet casing (2 of them!), Ice Breakers cap, oversized plastic drill, mini-alcohol bottle—Pink Whitney, Bottle Pop, plastic sand bucket, tennis ball, part of a tire, plastic toilet, crab trap, tire, vitamin cap.

by Ava Bee Masterson

My group met with Carrie Wofsy on Facetime, a therapist for adolescents with eating disorders or body dysmorphia. We discussed the causes of eating disorders and the effect social media has on our self-image. We discussed how editing the photos we put out into the media enforces an impossible standard that requires altering our appearance in some way, like an eating disorder. It’s not only the media that pushes this on people, it’s the people around you, that affect your opinions so strongly. If you hear someone talking about your food intake, or theirs, or talking poorly about someone’s appearance, that can really change your self-perception.
Carrie told us limiting the amount of time we spend consuming media can help us mentally, and stop us from spiraling into body dysmorphia. Everywhere you look beauty standards are pushed onto you, but it’s up to you to allow them to affect you. Eating disorders are a huge problem, and you might know someone struggling with one. We should all take time out of our day to think about what we say and how it could negatively affect someone. I know it sounds cliche but it’s what you can do to save lives.
Thank you Carrie for your time.

by 28jackm

On January 29th, my group mates and I joined Newtown Action Alliance Foundation (NAAF) during their meeting. The NAAF is a group that takes action against gun violence by supporting new laws for firearm restrictions. My group, along with another group researching gun violence, met with members of the NAAF to learn about gun violence. One of the things we learned is that there are new laws being proposed that aim to hinder the amount of gun deaths. During this time, we also assisted the NAAF in their lobbying efforts. Lobbying is when people call the offices of government officials to ask for their support for new laws and legislation. We were lobbying for Ethan’s Law, a new law that will make it illegal to keep an unsecured firearm if there is a chance that someone who cannot lawfully possess a firearm may gain access to that weapon.

by Amelia Mundy

Carrie Wofsy is a pediatric therapist for adolescents around ages 10 – 20 who have or have had an eating disorder and/or severe body dysmorphia. We were going to video call her on Zoom, but unfortunately it was unable to work so we ended up facetiming her. Although there was a miscommunication, I think we were able to get all the information we needed even with a struggle at the beginning.
At first, we talked about eating disorders, and we dug deeper into what the main roots of an eating disorder are, and if there are any ways to prevent it. Next, we talked about social media and the effect it has on everyone who uses it. We talked about how if you are struggling with your mental health, a way to take a break is to get offline for a little bit and recharge yourself. We also spoke a lot about how when you scroll on social media, everything you see has an effect on you. Even if you only see something for a split second, it’s still engraved in your brain, and it can still affect the way you see yourself. Carrie said a lot about how if we post more positive things and think about the media in a more positive way, it can better the way we perceive ourselves and lead to a more healthy life. I really enjoyed this interview and got a lot of information from it, and I am so glad we were able to speak with Carrie about this topic.

by 28jacobs

Since Ramel has worked at Rikers Island Jail for 19 years, he gave us lots of information on the prison system and what goes on inside of the jail daily for kids and adults. Ramel has been a guard for all types of ages who are in different circumstances. He has to take over an important role by monitoring people and their safety. Yet at the same time he has a relationship with inmates in times they don’t have anyone to talk to. Ramel also guards people 16-18 and sees a range of emotions between teens that could have caused them to end up in jail. Many teens in jail have depression and need things they aren’t accessible to in a jail cell at times such as programs or even role models. “Most of the kids don’t have a positive role model in their life which might have created their hard-headed, dangerous mentality.

by 28orim

We went to the bed stuy campaign against hunger campus and interviewed Michael Schaefer as he gave us a tour of their campus. We learned that they have multiple greenhouses to grow crops. Also one of their biggest greenhouse is about six tenths of in acre in far rockaway. Their largest greenhouse is about an acre and a quarter. We also learned that they began the campaign against hunger started about 25 years ago.

by 28miloo

We met with Ramel Small. Ramel is a guard for Rikers and other prisons. Ramel worked with all ages from 16 all the way to senior citizens he also worked with mentally troubled prisoners. Being guard for Rikers prison is hard because there are three officers for 50 prisoners and they all have to make rounds to make sure no one commits suicide or there are no fights that are happening. One time he saved a kid from committing suicide because he talked to him and he told him to “control the controllables”. Ramel tore his labram while breaking up a fight. Rikers has a school program for youth to try to set them up for the future.

by 28oskark

We met with Ramel Small who is a prison guard at ritkers island and other prisons. Ramel has been a guard with many different ages of people, ranging from 16 years old to senior citizens. The younger prisoners would stay in the “bubble” which is where they stayed. The bubble was one of the main places where fights would occur because there was only 3 guards compared to the 50 prisoners. There have been instances when Ramel was in danger of being attacked, one time all 50 of the prisoners wanted to fight him but he ended up being fine.

by 28julesb

On February 1st, 2024,, Ezra Stand, and Lincoln DePietro had our interview with Ceyenne Doroshow, leader and founder of G.L.I.T.S. (Gays and Lesbians In a Transgender Society). G.L.I.T.S. works for transgender youth who are heavily oppressed and discriminated against. Ceyenne talked about how when she was a kid, she had to run away from home. She did this because she was worried her parents were going to hurt or kill her for being trans. growing up she had no resources and started G.L.I.T.S. to change that for transgender youth in the modern day. Ceyenne talked about going to the covenant house and they sent her back out the front door because she was trans. G.L.I.T.S. has worked with organizations like StandDev and project Abigail. G.L.I.T.S. worked with project Abigail to make a building run by G.L.I.T.S. with emergency housing, affordable housing, basic medical, and food.

by 28ezras

during our interview with the director of Glits we talked about the affordable housing issues and how it affect the lgbtq+ community and how glits is trying to help the issue and I don’t think I’m really cut out for this whole jernilsam thing so I’m just dropping the interview for the image section

by 28jacobs

We met with Jarrell Daniels and heard his oppionon on ways to kids getting involved in gang violence and ending up in jail. Justice embasseder is a 12 week seminar that helps young people who have been incarated. Jarrell spoke about his expriences growing up in a gang setting and being incarated at a young age. Daniels changed as a person advocating for kids rights and countuining to be a role model to many kids. He belives that kids in low income communties should be given more recoruces and oppurtunity.

by 28orim

We went to bed stuy campaign against hunger campus and interviewed Michael Schaefer as he gave us a tour of their campus.

by 28lincolnd

Me, Ezra, and Jules met with Ceyenne Doroshow, the head of GLITS (Gays and Lesbians In a Transgender Society). She started out by saying that Glits is a human rights agency; it helps everyone in the spectrum. It looks like affordable housing, it looks like education. Everything should be equal for everyone. People need a college education no matter their sexuality. We asked her about other organisations for LGBTQ+ people that she recommends. She recommended Project Abigail (aka Stand Dev), Swop Behind Bars (which I had a very hard time trying to spell), Black Trans Liberation Kitchen, and Bridges for Life.

She said that while there are some good organisations, she doesn’t like too many of them because they really don’t help! I asked her about why this is a lesser known issue, and she responded by saying this isn’t something the government prioritises at all! However, the thing I found the most interesting about GLITS, is when Ceyenne talked about how she got to GLITS. As a kid, she ran away from home to save her life because she was afraid her parents would kill her when they found out she was identified as female. She hurt herself to prevent them from hurting her, and back when she was a kid, there were lots of organisations for gays and lesbians, but none for transgenders.

She introduced Ezra, Jules, and I to her dog, saying, “I think someone else thinks they’re being interviewed!” with a laugh. She then said in certain states, if a trans woman’s ID is female, they would be refused a house there until their ID is male. Other stories she mentioned included finding a woman a house when hers was on fire. She found it crazy that there were so many housing organisations out there and so few were for “our people.”

When doing a speech that raised a couple of million dollars, she bought a building for someone to live in. When working with Stand Dev, she found Tara and Jeremy (Ezra’s parents) to be very authentic. She found Jeremy to be very chatty and very smart. She looked at all parts of Project Abigail and loved it. She’s doing all this without the infrastructure. Project Abigail gave her that infrastructure. Ceyenne needed guidance, in which Tara gave her, and not only that, she found Tara to have a great fashion sense, continuing to say that if you want to be friends with her, you need to have a great fashion sense. She said that Ezra’s grandmother made the best cookie, and she felt like she had a family.

Overall, it was a great experience to work with GLITS

by 28wallyc

Our fieldwork with the Newtown Alliance was the most work we have put in yet to really stop gun violence. As we called senators from various states talking about Ethans law, which is when gun owners would be required to secure their firearms in a secure gun storage or safety device, and giving example on how it would help. The host of the zoom meetings son and 3 other family members have been victims of gun violence, Newtown Alliance started after the sandy hook school shooting.

We each called ten senators I was sent to voicemail seven times, a real person answered twice, and there was one with no response. We had a script we use for each senator and we would convey our message that Ethan’s law shall be passed, and it would stop many deaths that would have not happened with Ethan’s law enforced. All in all it was a wondeerful expierence and hopefully we made a difference in the U.S.A to make it a safer place!

by Milo Sandman

The gun control group at LREI had an amazing offer to interview Donna Dees over zoom on 1/29/24. There was so much information that we learned that we might have never found without the help of her. Donna was extremely nice and very open to answering all of our questions, even when we asked what type of dog she had!

While interviewing her, we were able to find out why she started the Million Mom’s March and why she cares so much about this topic. It turns out that there was a shooting at a summer camp by a white supremacist who was trying to kill Jewish kids, and Donna’s daughters were the same age at the time as the kids shot, but they survived. She made it primarily for moms, high school students, college students, dads, single people, and so on. Donna also had a family member commit suicide with a gun that was left unlocked. Overall this meeting/interview really opened mine and our groups eyes to look at as many ways as we can to help and prevent guns from getting into the wrong hands.

by Carolina Marinaccio

Yesterday my group was able to get in touch with a former LREI parent from years ago. Donna Dees, Donna Dees got in the Gun Violence movement after years ago their was a summer camp shooting where they were trying to kill the Jewish children. Donna’s daughters were around the same age as the children but they had survived. This made Donna get into the Gun Violence movement and start Millions Mom March. Which was an organization primarily made for moms who also wanted to stop gun violence. During the interview we got a lot more information, learned a lot, and heard her opinion on stuff. New York City and California actually have pretty good gun laws. And if the rest of the country had gun laws like theirs, there would be far less gun violence then their are now. Over all this interview was very informational.

by 28wallyc

Our fieldwork with Donna Dees, is definetly going to be really helpful. She has a very cool story, and a warming personality. She started the million mom march, which is a protest against gun violence affecting kids. She made it primarily for moms but high schoolers, college students, dads, single people, and so on were also welcome. She started it because at the time in 1999 a white supremacist shot kids at a daycare that were around her kids age. She said the gun industry tried finding ways to market guns to people who aren’t normally the type of person you would expect to have a gun, for example she said she went to a gun store and to “appeal a gun to her” they offered her a pink one.

She also shared with us some horrific stats like, 76% percent of school shooters get their guns from unlocked guns in their homes or from a relative. Gun death statistics have risen since covid. Guns are now the #1 cause of death for kids and teens.. She also mentioned how New York has pretty good gun laws, and if the rest of the country brought their gun laws up to California’s and New York’s level, it would greatly reduce our country’s gun deaths. She is not against ownership of gun though. Another crazy stat she shared was that UK banned guns in the 1990s and the law passed with not too much backlash. The only Scot killed by a gun last year was not in Scotland but he was killed in Salt Lake City, Utah. She also gave us some strategies to help fight against gun violence like, organizing, bold ideas, and persistence. And all of this is just a little bit of what she said, all in all, she taught us a lot.

Questions and answers:https://docs.google.com/document/d/1jDLyKGG-0hy3pJMgItjq7BnIjbpuCSYBn5g1TVqATZ8/edit

by Ruby Belloff

On January 31, Amelia, Bee, and I had an interview with social worker Carrie Wofsy, who works with patients who deal with eating disorders. She answered all of our questions and talked about people’s impacts on posting on social media and how that leads children to develop and consume standards that they have to follow. Wofsy made it clear to us that when we post these photos and videos about how we look, act, and speak, they will mold into our brains and automatically grow to the next generation. She also said that people need to find a way to talk about media more positively and balance out the unhappy thoughts, and that can lead to a healthy mindset and life. Wofsy says that in her work, she sees patients between the ages of 10 to early 20’s. According to research, most of the insecurities and eating disorders usually spark from that age range. We learned a lot, thank you Carrie!

by 28oskark

My group and I met with Jordyn Wilson from the sentencing project. I learned how harsh the conditions are for the children in prison they are pretty much abused and this needs to change. Young people in Maryland can be charged as an adult in 30 plus ways and she says young people should not be charged as an adult. Jordyn thinks that these young kids should fight for there rights and make there voice heard.

by 28miat

For our first piece of field work we met with Emily Pirro, an intake coordinator for Balance Eating Disorder Rehab Center. Her Job is to take incoming calls from people seeking help from the center and helps set them up with a program as well give them additional recommendations. The center provides body image support groups, mood groups and food safety groups. Many people that attend balance are younger however Emily mentioned there are many older women who come in who just recently realize they had been struggling with an eating disorder their whole life. The goal of balance is to ensure everybody has a health relationship with food and their body.

In the interview we discussed the effect that the media can have on women. We discussed how, with the age of social media, how many photos utilize lighting, angles, and photo-shopping to create the image of the “ideal body”. We talked about how the environment the you grow up in plays a large part in the way that you view your body and food.

by 28emmaf

When our group went to The Paley Center for Media, we talked to Rebekah Fisk who is a teacher for groups like us. Rebekah teaches about different ways women are represented in the media, and how some depictions of what a woman “should” be like or act like, can be hurtful to women’s self esteem and confidence.

When we were at the center, we discussed different ways women are represented in ads, movies, and TV shows. We also watched some old ads and clips from movies, and deliberated about which ones could be hurtful to girls watching from home. Watching these clips was incredibly interesting because I watched such different shows when I was little. Overall, it was a very interesting and informative visit, and I would love to go again.

by 28rayac

At first we sat down and talked to Rebekah Fisk who does many amazing things at Paley, but one thing that she does there that stood out to us was teach a class about how women are seen in the media. At the start of our interview we asked her many questions that we had such as, “what do you think is a big cause to insecurities for women.” Which she answer with, “Social media and how women are shown in movies and tv-shows.” Rebekah gave us many great responses, and we had many great back and forth conversations, and then she wanted to show us some videos of her own that she typically presents in her class about how women are seen in the media.

First Rebekah started off by showing us a clip from the 1950’s in which someone puts on a fat suit to not have a man like her. After watching this clip we talked as a group and with Rebekah about how this clip was saying that if you are bigger your ugly, when that is not the reality. This was a very mainstream show, so for content like this to be put into the world sets a lot of untrue standards. After that we saw a bunch of other clips such as Wonder Women from the 1980’s which over-sexuilzed her in physical appearance. Lastly we saw a video montage of shows from the 1950’s to now, and the beauty standards, and unfair media standards are still sadly in place.

by 28miloo

We met with Jarrell Daniels. Jarrell Daniels works for Center For Justice. Jarrell was a gang member and was indicted. Jarrel and his foundation want to reduce gang violence in low to moderate income neighborhoods. In New York City Brownsville Brooklyn, Bedford Stuyvesant South Bronx and South Jamaica Queens are most affected by gang violence. I learned that there are 40,000 things you can’t do once you get a felony. When youth go into the prison system they start to become sinical of the government. The biggest issue that the Center For Justice Foundation does is to help kids get back on their feet once they get injured.

by 28emmaf

In this fieldwork, we met with the intake coordinator for the Balance eating disorder treatment center, Emily Pirro. Emily picks up calls for people who seek rehab, sets up the care system, as well as give them recommendations. In the interview we discussed ways in which young people can support people struggling with disordered eating. We also discussed which groups get the most affected by eating disorders, and how to maintain a healthy relationship with your body and food.

When we spoke, the subject of support groups came up. Balance Eating Disorder Treatment center has two main support groups, the food and mood group and the body image support group. in the food support group, they make sure the people are eating and feel good. while in the body image support group, is for making people feel comfortable in their body and feel good about themselves.

by Carolina Marinaccio

For our fieldwork, we were able to get in touch for a Lunch & Lobby. Where we went on zoom and then were able to call 12 senators to convince them to pass Ethan’s Law. Ethan’s Law is a law which is trying to protect children and others from unsecured firearms. The name was named when Ethan a boy was tragically killed by an unsecured gun in 2018. The law would prevent things like this from happening again, by requiring safe gun storage. the Lunch and Lobby was run by a woman named Angela Weber who chose to get into the gun violence movement after her son survived a school shooting. As we called all the senators, we realized that not all of them would pick up. and typically we would just leave a voicemail. Some of the people in my group actually did get a hold of a senator on the phone! But sadly I was not one of those people. Overall this Lunch & Lobby was a pretty cool experience that I enjoyed doing a lot.

by Cali Greenspun

On January 12, our LREI 8th grade had the amazing opportunity to visit the United Nations building. During our time spent there, we got to see art exhibitions, conference rooms, and much more. Something I found really interesting is that all the countries that are a part of the UN contribute to the design of the conference rooms or offices, and more or less give a gift to contribute to the decorations and design. Another thing that I found intriguing was the exhibit on nuclear weapons and the destroyed statue found after the nuclear bomb Hiroshima hit. The statue looked somewhat intact on the front, but the back looked melted and destroyed from the nuclear power. I really enjoyed our time here and hope to visit again so I can experience even more!

by Milo Sandman

On 1/29/24 Jack, Carolina, Ryder, Noah, Wally, Luca and I all attended the Newtown Action Alliance Lunch and Lobbying zoom call. In this short time, we were able to learn about how to lobby senators all around the world. Sadly most calls ended up going to voice mail, we were able to speak with a few assistants that work alongside these senators.

This opportunity really opened mine and my group’s eyes because it showed us that even if we are a small group, every action we take is one towards helping an important cause. I personally really enjoyed working alongside with the Newtown Action Alliance because I felt that each call me and the fellow people in our group made, it is one small step to helping the government make stricter gun laws.

by Tuesday Hahn

On Friday, January 26th, me and my group, along with the plastic pollution group, had an interview at the high school with Keanu Arpels-Josiah. Keanu is a climate activist and member of many climate groups, such as Fridays for Future which was founded by Greta Thunberg.

Our meeting started off in the high school library. During the interview, we talked about many climate issues needing to be addressed in not only the US, but around the world. He told us about how the climate crisis doesn’t only affect our planet, but also people. We learned that people in poorer communities are highly affected by pollution, leading to unsafe drinking water.

One major thing that stuck with me from our interview is how much major companies contribute to the climate crisis. Around the world, companies are apart of systems of capitalism, which leads to major levels of CO2 being released into the air. This is super important to know, because as the CO2 levels rise, our planet slowly gets destroyed. Keanu informed us how at this rate, climate change is going to take years of work and dedication from everyone to reverse, and that is if people start making an effort. Major oil companies also contribute to climate change, putting oil into the oceans and killing off major ecosystems and putting many animals in danger.

To conclude, after this interview i feel like I now know a lot more about the climate crisis and Keanu’s experience in working with climate activists has motivated me to become more passionate in our topic.

by 28eamons

We went to the growler, and it was a very cool experience. The submarine was very long, but the quarters were quite cramped. I liked seeing where the crew lived, slept, and ate, and how they spent their time for months on end. It was a deeply imersive experience, and I reccomend 10/10, if you are not claustrophobic. If you are, though, do not go.

by Ruby Belloff

On January 29th, Amelia, Bee, Raya, Emma, Mia and I all went to the Paley Center For Media at 53rd street. We had an interview with the director and educator, Bekah Fisk. She answered our questions, which are recorded. She also showed us a montage of different videos, including music videos, ads, and clips from movies and tv shows. They all had a connection to the portrayal of women in media. We learned that most of the stereotypes came from mens’ perspectives and then put them into media and that spreads and creates more standards. Fisk told us that her mother cared deeply about how she looked. We learned a lot of facts about social media and how women are more pressured on TikTok, Instagram, and other media platforms and how that affects their mental health and how it becomes addicting. Our groups learned a lot from this talk, and we also had fun interviewing Bekah!

by Cove Stanton

First when we arrived at the growler, there was a tiny museum about what the growler did and just the general backstory before you went inside the growler. One thing I learned from that museum is that the growler used to go out on patrol during the cold war era and that the longest it has ever been out on sea was two and a half months, which I thought would be super depressing for the crew. And also during those two and a half months, the crew saw no sunlight because the growler was very stealthy so they were underwater for most of the time. And to put on top of all that misery, inside the growler was super skinny and claustrophobic. every single place you walk (except for the dining room and the game room) was a tiny bit wider than the average person. One thing that caught my eye especially was the bathrooms and shower rooms. The rooms were smaller than you can imagine, with little room to move your arms at all. One thing that made everything feel more claustrophobic was the bulkheads. The bulkheads were half the size of the narrow hallways so you kinda had to climb through it. Aside from all the depressing stuff about the growler, there were also some pretty cool looking things too. The coolest thing was probably where they launched the torpedoes. I got to see what the room looked like and a replica of the torpedoes. I also got to see how it worked, like how they loaded it and how the communication worked between the crew to launch the torpedoes. Another very cool thing was on top of the submarine, the nuclear warhead. It looked pretty big compared to the submarine, at least one eighth of the submarine. Luckily the crew never had to use the weapon while out on patrol. That was my experience on the USS Growler.

by 28sadiez

On Friday the 26th my group and I interviewed Patrick Markee about what he used to do at the Coalition for the Homeless as a Advocacy and Policy Director. He gave us so much useful information and useful insights and statistics for our project. Patrick went to Harvard University and studied urban planning before moving to New York and working at the coalition for over 20 years. He gave us a full introduction to what he did at the beginning of the interview and an overview of the history of homelessness. He told us that the periods where homelessness was most prominent were the Great Depression as well as the late 1970s and 80s which continue to be a problem today. He said that over the course of a year 130,000 people cycle through the NYC shelter system every year with over one-third of those people being children. He mostly focused and did work with single adults though, going to single adult shelters almost every day at the beginning of his time in the Coalition.

In his opinion he said that the main cause of homelessness is the lack of affordable housing in his words he said that “Musical chairs is the best analogy for homelessness.” He continued this by explaining that there aren’t enough affordable houses just like there aren’t enough chairs. He said that recently there has been so much inflation but not many raises in pay, resulting in more working-class people becoming homeless. We also talked about the process of getting into shelters and how difficult it is to go into the system as well as the bad living conditions. I learned a lot about how people get moved around in shelters as well as how there are worse living conditions than I thought and corruption in shelter systems.

by Amelia Mundy

On January 29, 2024, the two groups focusing on the topic of beauty standards traveled to the Paley Center for Media and met with Rebekah Fisk, who is a director and educator there. We had some amazing conversations, we watched some clips and videos, and overall we learned a lot. It was great to be able to speak with someone with so many good ideas, thoughts, and information. We spoke a little bit about how people are trying to make a difference and sort of fix this issue, and we explored a few of the ways people are trying to demolish stereotypes and put to sleep the many problematic ideas of women and girls.

One thing that we talked about in specific that was interesting to me was the portrayal of women and girls in TV shows, movies, commercials, and music videos. We dug deep into how girls are often expected to be a certain way and a lot of times they don’t want to be like that. We watched a clip from Buffy the Vampire Slayer where Buffy fought a vampire and saved a boy. At the end, the boy was asking how she did that and says: “But you’re just a girl,” and Buffy replies with “That’s exactly what I’ve been saying.” This is a great representation of how girls have extremely high expectations set for them, and although they do try to meet those expectations, a lot of times they don’t want to.

by 28milai

Gabriella, Olivia and I had an Interview with the CEO of New York Womens Foundation (NYWF), Ana Oliveira. We spoke about how bans on abortion make someone get forced into a life they don’t want, Oliveira also shared some stories about her personal experience working in this field.

by Cameron Fletcher

On the twenty ninth of January me and my fellow group members visited a Cold War submarine named the Growler. This nuclear submarine was in action throughout the peak years of the Cold War, 1958-19633 and was never hit or sunk. We got a close look at the missiles on the submarine and how it ran. The men that served on the ship did so by volunteering, out of a want to help their country. We were able to talk to some of these veterans and learn exactly what it was like to be a part of the crew on the USS Growler. The men had no sunlight or outside air whatsoever when inside the submarine. For their entire time they would await a call to launch missiles at targets, knowing that if they did, they could easily be found and blown to pieces. However, the men didn’t understand that their job involved ending lives. As we spoke to a Cold War Veteran, we learned that since their targets were so many miles away, they didn’t correlate launching missiles with death. It was more of just a job to them which is extremely problematic for the proliferation of nuclear weapons,

by Joshua Olusheki

On the 29th of January, My group members and I went to the Intrepid Museum. Our main focus was on the Growler submarine. We took photos, asked questions, and explored. We looked at many details and even got to see some artifacts. We saw a lot of jets and weapons, and even bunkers people would hide in, in the event of an attack. We learned a lot from veterans who were actually on the Growler submarine. People volunteered to be on the submarine, and about 100 people were on it. These volunteers rarely had fresh air, cramped living spaces, and no privacy. But the upside to this was the quality of their food. These soldiers would get steak and lobster for dinner and had some of the highest quality food. These soldiers were somewhat miserable, but they always looked forward to dinner. The growler submarine was the first submarine to have an ice cream maker. Many people on the Growler didn’t truly know what they were doing whenever they would fire off missiles, and young volunteers who had just got on the submarine would be the ones driving. When the Growler wanted to come up to surface level, there would be a large control panel that was dubbed “the Christmas tree”. The Christmas tree was a large control panel that made sure that everything was able to be opened. The Christmas tree consisted of red and green lights, and every single light had to be green to be open. In summary, the Intrepid museum was a very informative and insightful trip.

by Ava Bee Masterson

Me and my group traveled to the Paley Center, where we then met Rebekah Fisk, Director of Education with a history of working in museums and educational organizations. We discussed how beauty standards have spread and affected everyone. We discussed how they have originated and how unfair they are. Fisk told us her mother cared about her appearance, she said this was because if a daughter was imperfect, society would blame that on the mother. I added that girls are put to such a higher standard than boys, meant to be perfect and pretty and smart– but not too smart otherwise she’s a prude. Boys are raised to be imperfect, girls aren’t. I believe this is why so many girls have little confidence in themselves, we are raised to be unsure of ourselves, and hold less of an opinion because that’s what boys like to hear. Now, those girls are women and edit or filter photos of themselves to fit into that perfect body, an impossible and ridiculous standard that we are meant to somehow align to.

Fisk then showed us a few videos. The one that stood out most to me was one of a Wonder Woman fight scene. Wonder Woman (older version) was comedic and sexual, taking her role as a superhero unseriously and making a joke of a girl fighting. She, despite being strong and powerful in the comic, was submissive and ditsy in a way. It just shows how women have always been seen, as less than capable. She also showed us an ad asking older people vs young girls to “run like a girl”. The older ones ran offensively, tripping and bending their legs strangely. The girls ran normally, showing how women grow up being taught to have low self-confidence in themselves, it was sad.
The interview was very informational and I thoroughly enjoyed and appreciated my time in the Paley Center. Thank you Rebekah for your time

by Joshua Olusheki

by Cali Greenspun

Our first interview was so informative and really exciting.We met with a current senior at University of Pennsylvania. This student plays college soccer there, and had a lot to share with us. One really significant thing she shared is that the locker rooms between the men and women are drastically different. According to her, the women’s locker room is half the size of the men’s, has one old couch, and even had a mice problem last year. The men’s locker room on the other hand, has multiple new couches, tv’s, gaming switches, and is double the size of the women’s. Another struggle that they face is the constant feeling that they won’t be listened to. The student we interviewed shared experiences of being ignored by the administration when she shared complaints. The Penn newspaper is also much harsher on the women’s teams. They write things such as “how can the women’s team recover from this tragedy?”, and much more. She is also part of WAA (women’s activist association), and is trying her best to fight for equal rights. In conclusion, we really enjoyed this interview and are excited for our next one!

by Samuel Isbell

First, we zoomed in on the Newtown Action Alliance, a non-profit organization that helps fight gun violence in America, and got to learn about the people present. The first thing we learned was the personal experiences of the people at work in this organization and how it urged them to take action. This part of the fieldwork was very interesting because hearing the heartbreaking stories of those affected was a wake-up call for us to step up and fight for a gun violence-free America. The next thing we learned was about Ethan’s law. Ethans Law is a bill that enforces the security of firearms if they have the possibility of getting into the hands of a minor. Basically, making sure all firearms are untouchable for those who may harm themselves or others with them Once we learned about Ethan’s law, we got a list of senators and their numbers. From there, we followed a script that urged all the senators to cosponsor (support) Ethan’s law.

by Elias Markee-Ratner

On Friday, my group (along with the climate change group) got the opportunity to speak to Keanu, a high schooler at LREI who is heavily involved in climate activism. After meeting him in the lobby at the high school, we decided to do the interview in the library, where we took notes and recorded the conversation.

Keanu is involved with numerous organizations fighting climate change and has spoken at several events. In addition, he helped organize a major climate protest in New York City and visited the latest United Nations Climate Conference. During our conversation, he mentioned the extreme inaction of nations and corporations and how they’re employing any means necessary to avoid change. Given just how dire this issue is, it was really horrifying to hear how greedy humans can be.

Talking to Keanu was amazing and extremely informational. I was able to learn a lot about the close connections between the marine pollution crisis and the climate crisis (especially around plastic manufacturing because plastic is made from fossil fuels). It’s clear that both are pressing issues and need to be addressed, and he helped convey the urgency of the situation in a way I hadn’t heard before. In addition, he shared useful tips on how to get involved in activism and his own story, which were interesting and insightful.

One of the most important things I learned from our conversation was about which types of change are actually making the most difference and the importance of addressing issues at their root causes. For instance, while recycling can make a difference in plastic pollution, it can’t fully solve the problem. This plastic will still end up in the ocean eventually and new plastic is still being produced constantly. So, the root cause that needs addressing is the issue of plastic production. This helped me realize that even though the actions we as individual people are taking are important, the responsibility and the focus of our efforts should be on the companies that are creating the issues (especially because they are always trying to place the blame on the consumers. For example, BP, a major oil company, created the first carbon footprint calculator).

All in all, our interview was informational, insightful, and an amazing opportunity. I really felt like I now understand so much more about the climate crisis and climate activism after talking to Keanu.

by Juju Pepe

Keanu, a senior at LREI High school is a youth activist specifically in Climate Change. We walked to high school, met in the lobby and went to the library to interview him, as we were eager to learn more about what he does and his opinions on everything that we are studying. We took notes on what he said as well as recording the entire interview.

Keanu while being a youth activist put this to use and visited a sit-in in the UN Climate Change Conferences. And overall tries to make a change in his daily life by finding ways people don’t waste plastic or materials just by throwing them out. I learned that plastic pollution is one of the main social justice problems that are just set aside because people are ignoring it and not paying attention to it, and it will just keep getting worse if we keep doing that. It’s a major problem that needs to be addressed and Keanu said people aren’t spending much time on it and aren’t solving the problems they need to, as he saw while visiting the UN. Activism has to start with the people coming together as a community and that will never happen if we keep putting important problems aside and not giving them our full attention.

This experience was overall eye opening because I got to see people that are my age taking charge and making a change for what’s right. This leads me to feel empowered as well as eager to continue this project even more by studying plastic pollution and how everyday people can help. Keanu has shown me and my group that just average kids can make a change and that’s what I hope to accomplish.

by Ryan Small

Today, I interviewed Jarell Daniels of the Justice Ambassadors. He is a Columbia University graduate who helps the youth who are affected by the government prison system in any way shape or form. Jarrell used to be a member of the BLOODS, a gang originally formed in the 70’s. My social justice group, studying the Juvenile Prison System met with him over video and learned a whole lot more about our topic. He talked a lot about the importance of building a community that you could trust, and how implementing organizations similar to his into normal society will prevent the likelihood of juveniles going back to prison. His fondation in particular runs a course for 18-25 year olds, all of which are underprivileged kids. Jarrell’s goal is to change systems, foster institutional change, and resolve issues in the community.

One of the main things that he told us while we chatted with him was another common theme; the most incarcerated youth groups were all living in marginalized communities and had poor living conditions. We learned that your access to healthy food in your community, your education and even your housing conditions have a big impact on mental health and your likelihood of being imprisoned. Neighborhoods like East Harlem, Mount Vernon in The Bronx, and some areas of Bedford Stuyvesant in Brooklyn are all places that have low incomes in NYC. All of this info Jarrell has given us came from personal experience. As a former gang member and someone deeply affected by the prison system (being arrested and incarcerated for 6 years of his life) he has great insight on this topic. Seeing how it messes with people’s lives and his in particular, he used that as a driving force, an inspiration even, to turn his life around and start the Justice Ambassadors. Now he is a scholar who creates opportunities for those who were in similar positions as him when he was younger. That right there, is how you create change. The last piece of advice Jarrell gave us was to sign up for different programs, and initiatives to try and keep the youth out of the government prison systems. He told us to research the Next Generation Politics, a group focused on spreading awareness about this issue and ways to help through activism and donations.

Thanks to our meeting with Jarrell Daniels, I learned about different ways to help juveniles around the city and got a little bit more information on why and how the prison systems impact our communities.

by Elias Markee-Ratner

While the ocean may seem like an inhospitable place for avian life, the truth is that over 300 species of birds call it home. For them, ending up on land is like a human getting stranded in the ocean. Therefore, the only time they visit terra firms is to breed.

So for birders, the best chance to find seabirds is to head offshore on ‘pelagic’ trips, which are targeted at birders but can be amazing opportunities to see a variety of marine life besides birds. And that’s how I found myself standing on a dock in Sheepshead Bay (in Brooklyn) at 5:30 am along with 30+ other birders, waiting to board the American Princess and head over 50 miles from shore to find what New York’s waters have to offer.

Once we were off, it took a little while to get light enough to spot birds. But once it was, we quickly spotted a pair of Dovekies two miles off of the Rockaways. These birds max out at just eight inches long and sit on the surface of the water, diving under in search of plankton. They nest in the Arctic on cliffs and spend the winter as far south as North Carolina. We were all shocked by this sighting because Dovekies are typically found in waters 25+ miles from shore and prefer water temperatures of 45-50 degrees Fahrenheit. We were 23 miles closer to shore than expected, and the water was just 42 degrees.

This trend continued throughout the day, as we kept spotting Dovekies from that moment onward. When we were 15 miles from shore, we spotted an Atlantic Puffin. This adorable seabird is related to Dovekies and is famous for its clownish looks and habits. However, few people know that they can be found in New York’s waters. But, like the Dovekies, something was wrong: puffins are only found more than 40 miles from shore and have similar temperature preferences to Dovekies. Once again, the water was too cold and we were too close to land. And this puffin wasn’t a one-off: we continued to see them for the rest of the trip up until we saw one 17 miles offshore on our way back.

Just moments after we saw our first puffin of the trip, we spotted a couple Common Murres. These are also related to puffins and Dovekies, but are more expected so close to shore (they’re most common 20-30 miles from and). However, on our way back to shore, we also spotted one just 10 miles off of Long Beach, which is closer than expected. Clearly, we were having an odd trip.

But things only got stranger when we made it to the area in which Dovekies are expected: 30+ miles from shore. While Dovekies had been common for most of the trip up until that point, they became quite scarce, despite the water temperature being perfect for them.

So the question is: why were all of the birds in the wrong places? And the truth is that we don’t know. While this could have something to do with a recent cold snap, seabirds are incredibly tough and this doesn’t seem to tell the full story (especially because a pelagic trip last year also encountered Dovekies and Atlantic Puffins closer to shore than normal). And while warming oceans is a possibility, the waters in which we encountered Dovekies and puffins were often too cold for them. It seems that they were being pushed into marginal habitat because of diminished food supply.

But that still leaves the question of why there was a shortage of food. And once again, we don’t really know why. This could relate to warming oceans or changing conditions, but it could also relate to marine pollution or another issue. It’s an interesting situation that requires much more research to fully understand.

By this point, you may be wondering why I am talking about birds for a project about social justice. Just like how marine pollution and climate change are linked, our fates are linked with those of animals. These seabirds eat some of the same foods as we do and we both rely on these ecosystems, for food and for our livelihoods. They can be indicators of collapsing ocean ecosystems that will also harm us. In addition, puffins and Dovekies are vital to certain communities as tourism attractions and food sources. What happens here will affect those communities, even if they are hundreds or thousands of miles north of here.

In addition to birds, I also took photos of any marine pollution we encountered, including plastic bags and even a balloon with lego patterning.

All in all, the trip was amazing: along with the birds I mentioned, we saw tons more ocean-dwelling avian life and even a couple Gray Seals, as well as a Humpback Whale. It was an eye-opening experience that taught me a lot about the importance of marine ecosystems and their plight.

by Emmett Rapp

Today I went to The Intrepid Museum in NYC. We first visited the Growler Submarine which was a submarine that was operational for six years and was active in The Cold War but only as a patrolling submarine seeing as they were afraid if they used any missiles or nuclear devices that they would get found out and would be destroyed and killed. This submarine could hold 70-100 people at a time and would be out at sea for two months at a time and then would have to go back to shore and then back out to sea again. Everyone who was on that ship volunteered to go on. This was one of the first ships built to launch and carry nuclear devices. We talked to people there and one very interesting fact that we found out was that this was actually the first ever ship to have an ice cream machine on it. Afterward, we looked through the rest of the Intrepid Museum and looked at a variety of different warplanes and helicopters.

by Luca Chou

Today, January 29, both gun violence groups joined the Newtown Action Alliance’s lobbying event. Newtown Action Alliance is a group of people who are trying to reduce gun violence percentages through legislative and cultural changes. In this event students learned more about gun violence and recent events related to it. We also learned how to contact senators and asked them to co-sponsor S. 173, Ethan’s Law. Ethan’s law says that gun owners should be required to secure their firearms in a “secure gun storage or safety device” if a minor is likely to gain access to the firearm without permission, or if a resident of the dwelling cannot legally possess a firearm under existing law. We are fighting for this law because way too many children have died from accidental gun deaths. Most of these deaths came from improperly stored weapons.

For the rest of the session, me and my classmates actually called the senators and proposed to them why they should sponsor Ethan’s law. It was a very enjoyable experience for me because I got to contact high power officials and have them consider helping a cause that I am very fond of, being gun control. I was not able to talk to every senator directly, but I was still able to get my point across through voicemail which was just as impactful. This experience was very special to me and I am very glad I can now put the information we learned into an informational presentation for everybody.

by 28oliviag

On Thursday, Mila, Gabriella, and I sat down with the president and CEO of the New York Women’s Foundation, Ana Oliveira. Oliveira talked to us about what her organization works to do and how that weaves in to abortion access in our country. Oliveira also explained the importance of legal abortion and reproductive rights as a whole, while touching on the stories she has experienced during her work.

The New York Women’s Foundation creates grants and funds women’s rights organizations in communities that need it the most. The organization gets in contact with community leaders and those that help provide resources for women in lower income communities. NYWF allocates its funds to the most prominent issues that are currently affected by women in New York. The foundation works as a network to bring together women and those who can help them.

Through her work, Oliveira has heard countless stories about negative effects of abortion bans across America. Many women who seek abortion care have been subjected to sexual violence and abuse. A majority of pregnancies in states that ban abortion are caused by rape. Oliveira tells us that she particularly sees high maternal death rates in minorities and lower income communities. Reproductive health is reliant on the quality of resources given to women, which make women in lower income communities particularly vulnerable. Oliveira feels that if we do not have choice over our bodies our lives are determined for us. Oliveira captures this idea by telling us, “Our body is our terrain. Our ability to control what we do in life is fundamental.” She deduces that abortion bans are extremely damaging.

Our interview with Ana Oliveira was informative and gave me a better understanding of what the overturning of Roe v. Wade means for many women around the country. I am truly inspired by Oliveira’s passion and the wonderful work New York Women’s Foundation does. Speaking to her was a pleasure. After the interview, I feel I grasp a better understanding of the unfortunate realities caused by lack of access to reproductive care.

by 28jacobs

My group met with Jordyn Wilson, who is a youth justice campaign associate at the sentencing project. The sentencing project helps kids who get trialed as adults but are juveniles. and works to impact youth incarceration. We all collectively learned about the experiences of kids in jail. We also learned that “Other countries have more stable facilities and systems for incarcerated people and go through less trauma throughout their experience.” Jordyn informed us with more in-depth information relating to kids in jail and allowed us to view various perspectives on this. issue.

by 28ezras

During the fieldwork, we interview Petr Stand from the for-profit organization Stand Dev. In this interview, we talked about the issue of affordable housing, the impact of affordable housing projects on communities, trans-specific housing, and how to properly execute affordable housing progects

We met with Champion Woman to discuss the impact Gender Inequality has on Youth today. We met with Nancy Hogshead and Alistair Casey. We learned a lot about what they do to help advocate and bring attention to Woman in Sports. We also learned about their project called Title IX and all of the work they have put into it. We talked a lot about how we have experience sexism in sports and how it is important to speak up about it. They talked to us about our schools facility and how we feel our school has changed over the years inregards to its gender equality. We then talked about how we think we should go about our project and what are the most important questions we should incorporate in.

by 28lincolnd

We met with Ezra’s grandfather and interviewed him about Stand Dev. I wasn’t at the interview, so I don’t exactly know what they did.

by 28jonahk

During our fieldwork, we went to the Manhattan Church of Christ and met Carl garrison, The minister of homeless outreach. We helped homeless and impoverished individuals find the clothes they wanted from the free store in the basement. After that, we interviewed Carl and a formerly homeless man, Richard Jones. We learned a lot about people’s firsthand experience with the homeless crisis while helping them have the best possible time at the church.

by 28zoeys

On 1/23/24 we met with Nancy Hogshead-Makar the CEO of Champion Women and Alistair Casey the COO of Champion Women. We talked with them about the broad topic of gender Sexism Against Women in Sports, and they gave us the opportunity to meet with them over Zoom. We asked them questions about their current projects as they shared links with graphs and information through the Zoom chat. They also asked us questions about our opinions and where in our school we see inequality in women’s sports. As their title lX project asks is your school treating women fairly? They shared with us data they collected from high schools, colleges, and universities and determined the financial gap, in scholarship dollars, between schools and gender equality. They also had a high school student (who is also working with them) sit in on our Zoom meeting. She later after emailed us and gave us a project that was related to the content we discussed in the meeting. They even talked with us about giving us more opportunities with them in the future. We appreciate them very much for their help so far and hopefully can’t wait to work more with them in the future.

by 28ceciliat

Almost every Saturday, Carl Garrison runs meal distribution and a clothing pantry. In a cafeteria like space, he serves full meals (they served salmon, salad, and rice while we were there), drinks like hot chocolate, coffee, and tea, and also dessert like cinnamon buns, cheesecake, and chocolate cake. Carl has partnered with an organization through the government that provides Carl with everyday basic clothing in many different sizes.

We worked downstairs in the clothing pantry. We helped the people that came through find the most practicle things and their sizes. We looked for shoe sizes and through piles of clothes to find the perfect fit. People would come through and would be looking for specific things and it was our job to find them. Carl and his crew had a shortage of coats though. Emma our honorary group-mate for the day folded all of the kids clothes. There were about 250 clothes she folded in total.

by 28elis

On Friday, Leo, Sadie and I interviewed Patrick Markee, the former Deputy Executive Director for Advocacy. The interview was truly a treasure trove of information, so every single point we covered may not be included in this summary. At first, he gave us a summary of his work and important facts that he includes in his lectures when he visits colleges. He got into his line of work when he and his roommate decided to invite a homeless man they befriended to stay in their dorm. He majored in urban planning at Harvard University, and this led him to be interested in public/affordable housing. He joined Coalition for the Homeless in 1995.

Coalition for the Homeless has done plenty of work with homeless advocacy, shelter law, giving people affordable housing and getting them out of homelessness, and has also brought major lawsuits such as the Callahan Consent Decree. This lawsuit introduced a court decree in which Coalition for the Homeless was the monitor. This decree stated that all shelters must provide a bed and other basic needs to a person requesting shelter by the nighttime. It was a law that changed homelessness in New York City forever.

Of the many things we learned from this interview, a few that stood out is the leading cause of homelessness: affordable housing. Throughout the years, housing has been getting more and more expensive, one’s income stays relatively the same.

by 28wallyc

Our fieldwork with Marika helped me and my group learn a lot about the mental health side of gun violence. She helped us learn that connecting gun violence and mental health is not the right thing to do. And people thinking that people who have mental health issues are violent, are straight up wrong, and just making unknowlegable inference. She shared chilling and scary facts about the truth of suicide as well and just how common it is, as six out of every ten gun deaths in the U.S.A are suicide, 68 suicides happen a day in the U.S.A alone.

Here is a quote from her that sums up a lot of what she said in my opinion, this is what she said, “The vast majority of gun violence is not perpetuated by people with mental ilness.” Both Gun violence and mental illnes are both national problems. And at that very big ones, as many die from both each and everyday. So in conclusion this fieldwork helped us learn a whole lot!

by 28oliviaw

Our first interview was everything we expected and more. We met with a soccer player at the University of Pennsylvania. She is currently a senior. We learned about her struggles, experiences, and success. We learned about how the male soccer team has a much nicer locker room with more than one couch, TVs, and a ping pong table and it is much bigger than the girls’ locker room as the girl’s locker room is half the size of the boy’s room. They have about the same amount of players on both the male and female soccer teams. The girl’s locker room also has a mice problem. The male and female teams get funding from the same place but the men’s team gets more of the money. All of the female sports teams right now are coached by women but not one male team has a head female coach. More effort goes into the male team, especially with the publicity. For example, the Penn newspaper is much harsher on the female team. Although the media coverage is pretty much the same, the way it is advertised and talked about is very different. One of the hardest things for her to face at school is having the confidence to speak up against injustice and be listened to. One thing she would change is making sure that there is a culture that makes female athletes more comfortable.

by Mikhaella O. Joyce Ibe

On the 24th of January 2023, me and my team members interviewed Kenna Mateos, Program Director at Welcome Home Jersey City and discussed her organization. They help out with refugees and asylum seekers all around Jersey City. We were able to get lots of information from her, like how most refugees around Jersey City do not have lots of places to stay or how they do not have lots of jobs which is very unfortunate. Thankfully though, Kenna and her team help out a lot with that, by providing classes and food drives for those who struggle with those materials.

She also taught us the difference between an asylum seeker and a refugee. A refugee is someone who is fleeing their country due to unlucky circumstances, while an asylum seeker is someone who leaves willingly for a better life. The interview lasted about 26 minutes long, and we thank Kenna for taking the time to interview us, and we thank Welcome Home for helping out refugees everywhere!

by 28miloo

We met with Jordyn Wilson from the sentencing Project. The Sentencing Project tries to help kids that are getting tried as adults to be tried as juveniles. I learned that putting children in the adult system messes up their mental health . I also learned putting children in adult prisons doesn’t help at all. Race also goes into it as Black kids are 10 times more likely to be incarcerated than white kids. In Maryland juveniles can be charged for adult crimes in 30 plus ways.

by Leonardo Shachtman

On January twenty-sixth my group and I met with Patrick Markee, the former director of advocacy for the Coalition for the Homeless. We had an interview that lasted about one hour, in which we talked about several things. The first of which is what Patrick Markee did as director of advocacy for the Coalition for the Homeless. We learned he would do things like go to many different homeless shelters and see if they were following the regulations set upon them properly. Those regulations were seemingly simple things such as having beds three feet apart, we also learned most homeless shelters don’t follow these regulations.

We talked about several more things such as the disproportionately high rate of black children experiencing homelessness as opposed to white children, the stereotypes against homeless people, and something called hostile architecture. The concept of hostile architecture was interesting to me as it essentially makes things like public benches harder to sleep on for fear that homeless people will sleep on them. Learning about this was interesting to me because it honestly doesn’t seem to make sense, as you would think that New York City would want to help homeless people in whatever way they could. Overall, this interview was both enjoyable and enlightening.

by 28ceciliat

by 28oskark

We met Jordyn Wilson from the Sentencing Project

by 28aarong

My fieldwork started by setting tables. After that, I headed downstairs to give out clothing and help people find what they were looking for. Once handing out clothing stopped my group members interviewed Carl Garrison and Richard Jones. From this, I learned many things such as how housing programs give people homes but the homes must be consistently inspected. If the homes do not meet the standards the person in it loses the home. I was also told that young people working to help the homeless and having faith in people can help them have faith in themselves.

From the interviews, I learned a lot about activism in general. I learned that it can really impact people personally and it can impact the system. It can cause a lot of change. I learned that personally helping a person such as going out to hand out clothes or food has a genuinely big impact. Showing you care makes a big difference and it can help raise people’s confidence in themselves leading to self-improvement.

by 28elis

The Manhattan Church of Christ is located on 80th Street, right near Central Park. Although the building is unassuming, the kind community I was greeted by was so much more than I expected. Carl Garrison, one of the ministers at the church, organizes the food bank and clothing pantry. When we arrived, he briefed us on the process of serving people. Some fellow volunteers were quite experienced, and helped us learn the ropes. Sadie and I were assigned to work the drinks area. People would come up asking for a drink, and then we would serve them. They had a wide selection available, includiong coffee, creamers, tea, and hot chocolate. Although at first I was a bit rusty and slow, I eventually got into a rhythm.

This fieldwork opened my eyes to the fact that houseless people are just like everyone else. I partook in multiple conversations with the people who I was serving, and I found them to be as engaging as my friends and family. Before this, I have always believed the myth told by my parents and others that houseless people, especially ones with disabilities, and dangerous and should be avoided. This stereotype is simply untrue. No one was hostile at the food bank, and everyone was talking to eachother. Everyone was very patient, and there was no hostility.

Similar to people with disabilities, houseless people are grouped away and considered as subhuman, crazy, and hostile. This societal stigma around houseless people also makes it harder for homeless people to move into permanent housing and get a stable job, because they are too different. Although relating to disability, I think that this quote from Stella Young clearly represents this issue: “My disability exists not because I use a wheelchair, but because the broader environment isn’t accessible.” Houseless people are not dangerous or different from people with stable housing, people with stable housing and the general population thinks that houseless people are “different”.

by 28sadiez

During this fieldwork we worked to pass out food and clothes to the homeless with a group of other volunteers. We went to the Manhattan Church of Christ on E 80th street and volunteered from 9:00am to 12:00 pm. The Church of Christ offers this service every Saturday led by Carl Garrison. We offered a hot meal, coffee, cake, chips, and cookies to any homeless person that stopped by and we got to talk to many of the people too. They were incredibly kind and grateful and it was an overall amazing experience.

I learned many things related to my topic but one thing that I took away was how I learned a lot about the stereotypes and stigmas of being homeless. So many people are raised to believe that homeless people are violent and to stay away from them because if you give them money they will only spend it on drugs and alcohol. During this fieldwork I learned the difference one bag of chips or one sweater can make. I talked to some of the people and the majority of them were not on the streets due to addiction but were on them due to inflation and rent prices going up. These stereotypes are based on a very small group of people and because of them people rarely stop to help. In my social justice project I want to raise awareness and this fieldwork gave me a lot more knowledge.

by 28sevillet

We had a virtual interview with the CEO of Champion Women, Nancy Hogshead, and COO Alistair Casey. We learned a lot about what they do in their organization what they are doing to make a change and spread awareness about gender inequality in sports, and about their Title IX program and how it connects to Title 6. We talked about how many things in schools’ sports programs and facilities demonstrate sexism and inequality, and what we can do to draw more attention to it.

by 28rayac

For our interview we met with the intake coordinator, as well as the third point of contact for Balance Eating Disorder Rehab Center, named Emily Pirro. Emily has a lot of tasks well working at Balance such as, picking up calls for people who have sought interest into going into rehab, she also sets people up into the care system, as well as give recommendations. Emily told us that a large cause to the people in this rehab center started with social media filters, and photo editing causing large body issue upon the patients.

This center not only provides body image support groups, but they also provide food safety and mood groups. Throughout the center they make sure that people eat, but not in a overwhelming manor, they do what is comfortable for the patients. A lot of people that attend Balance are younger, but Emily brought up that the older people that attend, go because they realize that they have struggled with their body their whole life and want to fix it. Balance is a place that people go to help their relationship with their body and food relationship, and 9/10 people come out feeling a lot more positive about themselves.

by 28rayac

by Ava Bee Masterson

On Janurary 12th my grade visited the United Nations. There we saw the rooms that have witnessed the trajectory of countries all over the world. Our groups all split up and were taken through the UN by our lovely tour guides. I learned that when you come to resolutions by a vote, you only need to get a majority to agree to proceed with it (for the most part). I learned the Security Council’s president, which is currently France, alternates every month as well– it’s fascinating how complex and grand the system in the UN is. It was interesting to observe the reserved seats for each ‘state’, just imagining all the important people that have sat in them was truly special.

I enjoyed seeing the various art pieces scattered about the building. I remember in the lobby there were portraits of different Secretary Generals made from silk fabric, very avant-garde. There was this plant with a little sweater on its branches, not something I’d expect to see in the United Nations- again in the lobby. Not to mention the beautiful sculptures outside the building, full of history in America (I think).
Overall I enjoyed this trip, and will certainly remember it for years to come. Thank you for taking us to the UN!

by Charlie Lawson

At the Museum we met our tour guide and they taught us about activism in New york. I learned about many different strategies used to protest and make change. I really liked how they made art be a type of social protest, and how Black Lives Matter protests make really creative signs to try and make change. I couldn’t believe that 1 in 20 train stations are accessible to people with disabilities. New York says all train stations will be accessible by around 2035. That is 11 years from now. I couldn’t imagine how hard it is for people in wheelchairs or people with other disabilities to use trains or transport around New York. Right now I use a car to get around because I’m currently in crutches and I know I am very lucky to have a car in New York because not many people have one. I saw a few acts of activism that I have learned about before, such as Rosa Park not sitting at the back of the bus, and the transgender activists starting the gay pride parade.

by 28jackm

On January 19th, my group met with one of our members, Wally’s, mother, Marika Condos. Marika has been a therapist for 25 years and she has worked with many people and organizations. We talked to her about the relationship between gun violence and mental health. One of the major points she made was expressing how the idea that mental illness leads to gun violence is a myth. She was very adamant about debunking this myth and she said that gun violence and mental health are more linked through trauma of mental illness. More than 50% of gun related deaths are suicides and Marika brought this up many times. Another main point she made was about how mental health and wellbeing has been a disaproved of for decades. Not until recently, therapy and selfcare have become more mainstream. Our group gained a lot of valueble information from Marika. We are now more prepared for further feildwork and studying.

by Milo Sandman

On January 19 2024 me Wally, Jack, and Luca interviewed Marika Condos. She has been a therapist for the past 25 years and has worked as a private therapist and also for CMHs. This interview was a great way for us to learn about unspoken parts of gun violence and the mental state of people who go to therapy. One fact we learned that had great importance is people who are mentally unstable, are not all violent and try to cause harm to other people, only about 2.5% of mentally unstable people are aggressive. Me and my group are so lucky we were able to meet with Marika and she was so willing to answer all of our questions.

by Luca Chou

Today our gun violence SJ group talked to Wally’s mother Marika Condos. Marika Condos is a therapist living in NYC who has been working with people for 25 years. In our 30 minute interview, Marika gave us good information about her work in Mental Health. During the interview Marika talked about how mental health doesn’t actually affect and/or increase gun violence percentages. This is a myth that shooters have mental health issues and most of the population believes this myth. Marika was talking about how dangerous this myth can be because mental health really affects peoples lives, but it doesn’t correlate to gun violence.

Another major topic that Marika talked about was that a lot of people who need help are afraid to get it and would rather suffer. I think this is very interesting because these people who keep suffering and don’t get help can lead to committing suicide or maybe worse with mass shootings. These people who commit mass shootings may not be mentally unstable but tragically harmed and are suffering because of their own circumstances. Also she talked about how gun laws need to be strengthened and how it is way too easy to get a firearm and how little people are going to therapy even though they need it.

by Cooper Hofmann

Today I had the opportunity to interview Jose Alfaro, a former victim of child trafficking, a active participant in department of homeland security hearings on child trafficking, and a author of his own autobiographic book. In the interview we talked about his story, how he overcame the trauma of being trafficked, his feelings on what the government could to prevent this from happening in the future, and if there were any volunteer opportunity’s for us to help the cause to prevent child trafficking. Everything he talked about was very informative and he even gave us permission to voice record the entire interview. He talked about how he believed the best way we as a society we could prevent something like this from happening to any of us, was to educate our selves on the topic. He also mentioned how he though the best way for the government to respond to such a major issue is to build more affordable housing and homeless shelters to give kids and people the opportunities that he did not have which eventually led him to get trafficked.

by Mikhaella O. Joyce Ibe

On the 12th of January, our eighth grade classes went to visit The United Nations, which is where their goal of “achieving international co-operation in solving international problems of an economic, social, cultural, or humanitarian character,” is met. We learnt and saw many features of the UN, such as The General Assembly Hall where all the 193 Member States meet up to discuss and debate. We saw where everything happened. But the real thing that fascinated me was the artifacts they had.

They displayed many artifacts, like old bombs and educated us on the historical events on these bombs. They also had different types of other art that were made to represent the other countries and it was scattered everywhere. It was truly an enjoyable experience.

by Milo Sandman

Me and the fellow eighth graders from LREI visited the United Nations in NYC. This is one of or if not the most important buildings in New York City, this is where all the presidents meet to discuss wars and to maintain peace. Fun fact, the three big things that are inside of the UN are all donated by other countries. We were able to get this amazing tour because of our wonderful tour guide who showed us around the building. Throughout this whole tour, my topic of Gun Violence in NYC was brought up rarely, our tour guide talked about the military budgets, this stands at a staggering 1.8 trillion dollars a year. Overall, this trip was amazing and would 100% recommend to anyone slightly interested in visiting the UN.

by 28elis

Visiting the United Nations was a very enjoyable and educational experience. We visited various important spaces such as the Trusteeship Council, Economic and Social Council, Security Council and the General Assembly. These rooms were very large, and the size and granduire reflected the tremendous desicions that are made in these rooms. It’s quite humbling to sit in the same chair where famous leaders and changemakers sit and make important desicions about our Earth’s future. Throughout the campus, I noticed this same architecture that is shown in the rooms we visited. The massive main building is very humbling, but not in a bad way. When I stepped into the building, I felt aspirational, willing to act as not just my self, but on behalf country represented on a world stage.

In terms of activism, I learned many things about the UN’s goals from our tour guide. Around General Assembly building, there were a few murals or projects that exemplified the core principles of the UN, and its 17 sustainability goals. I also learned that the UN has various peacekeeping forces/initiatives in various other countries, contrary to the critism of the UN as an orginization that is all talk. The guide also explained the structure of the UN, including the current memebers of the security council, it’s permanent members, and how desicions get made in the security council (which meets on request) and General Assembly (which occurs yearly).

In addition to the activism and architechture, the were many exhibits and artworks in the UN, many of which were donated to the orginization by member states. Some of the most notable artworks were the slave trade memorial in the courtyard area, “Good Defeats Evil”, a sculpture constructed out of actual fragments of Soviet and US missilies, which depicts a person on a horse slaying a dragon with a spear. One exhibit I enjoyed was the hallway about militaries, and the amount of money the US and other countries worldwide spend on our militaries compared to the UN’s budget. It also showed the devastating effects of our military such as the nuclear attacks on Japan.

Overall, this trip was a very educational and enriching experience where I was enlightened to an international point of view on life. When visiting the United Nations, you are opening a viewpoint of the entire world. This orginization inspires hope in me and the population of the world to achieve world peace.

by 28wallyc

The United Nations is a place located on E42nd street in midtown Manhattan. There are 193 states in UN. It is a place where huge decisons are made for the world. It has very strict secruity because it is a very important/sacred building. António Guterres is the current Secretary-General of the United Nations. He is the ninth Secretary-General, his term began 1 January, 2017. He is from Portugal, he is 74 years old. There are many discussion rooms where people can listen in each president can bring five other people.

Now you might be wondering what we did there! First we went through the vicious secruity, after there was thing big peaceful space with some sculptures, we stayed there for about an hour! After we went inside and met up with our amazing tour guide. We then went into some of the discussion rooms, they were really cool they had a lot of seats for viewers and discussers. There was also a lot of art work all around the building and cool artifacts! And after we went back to schools and all enjoyed our wonderful lunches.

by Amelia Mundy

On January 12th, 2024, the eighth grade and staff got on the train and traveled to the United Nations in Midtown Manhattan. We were greeted with security, a large courtyard, and eventually, a tour guide in the main building of the United Nations. The UN tour sparked my curiosity, especially when I went to the Security Council Chamber. I discovered that the nations on the council were arranged to sit in in blue seats, with their assistants sitting behind them. The Security Council’s president, who is now France, alternates every month. The countries that are not members of the council are able to watch from the red chairs surrounding the main circle. I also learned that any nation engaged in a conflict that the council wishes to discuss is eligible to have a place at the table.

Another aspect of the United Nations building that I enjoyed was that were was a lot of art with a lot of meaning to it. There were sculptures, paintings, and architectural components that were donated to the United Nations to be presented in the building. These things were given from many different countries, such as Finland, Tailand, and Malaysia. I loved seeing the different artworks around the building, and I was happy that you could appreciate it as you walk around the workplace if you worked there.

by 28oliviaw

Today We went to the UN, We went to almost all of the meeting offices and we saw many different artifacts. For example, we saw artifacts that were rescued from somewhere that had been bombed like A statue of a woman. One Of my Favorite things to see was the meeting rooms or the bricks that were made out of 100% plastic. I didn’t really learn anything about my topic while I was visiting the UN.

by Milo Sandman

Me and the fellow eighth grade from LREI visited the United Nations in NYC. This is one of or if not the most important buildings in New York City, this is where all the presidents meet to discuss wars and to maintain peace. Fun fact, the three big things that are inside of the UN are all donated by other countries. We were able to get this amazing tour because of our wonderful tour guide who showed us around the building. Throughout this whole tour, my topic of Gun Violence in NYC was brought up rarely, our tour guide talked about the military budgets, this stands at a staggering 1.8 trillion dollars a year. Overall, this trip was amazing and would 100% recommend to anyone slightly interested in visiting the UN.

by Milo Sandman

by Luca Chou

On January 12th, 2024, the 8th grade at LREI went to the United Nations office in NYC to learn more about their Social Justice Project. While at the UN we were given a tour by one of their tour guides and were able to see plenty of informational pieces of art and special rooms. On the trip we saw many different artifacts, for example, one that came from the Hiroshima bomb site. The coolest thing for me was getting to see the three government rooms that UN leaders meet in and discuss important topics. This was very interesting for me because I got to be in the same room as very powerful people and it was very special to learn about its history.

Something that I saw at the UN that related to my SJ topic was the Non-Violence statue that lived outside the main entrance. This piece of art was given to the United Nations HQ by Carl Fredrik Reutersward a Swedish artist. This sculpture depicts a 45 caliber-revolver with it’s barrel tied in a knot. The main message it’s trying to give is the vision of a peaceful world and having it placed at the UN where they decide human rights is very impactful. Although the statue is also a memorial to John Lennon, one of Carl’s friends who tragically died. This statue relates to our SJ topic because it shows how tragic gun violence is and how many people want peace in the world.

by 28sadiez

While visiting the United Nations I learned so much about all the world leaders and how they come together to make decisions about important topics. It was amazing that we could see the inside of the building where so many important figures have been while making choices that affected the whole world. I found the fact that many of the things in the U.N. were donated by different countries like Denmark and Thailand fascinating. Knowing that even though each country has different goals, so many leaders made peace a priority and agreed to make ground rules for human rights and to meet up once a year made me feel protected. At the U.N. many countries also made the climate a priority with the Sustainability goals and I am very glad that people in power are trying to solve that problem. I also learned about the different levels of power in the United Nations and how the original countries to join it, Russia, the U.S., China, the UK, and France have more power on the Security Council and can veto decisions.

The art in the United Nations was also very powerful and beautiful. In the downstairs section, the portraits made out of rugs presented by Iran really stood out to me. It was very interesting how they took everyday materials and turned them into portraits of Secretary generals in U.N, not only honoring them but creating a piece of art. I also thought that the mural made of beads showing all different races and religions together was very beautiful.

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Interview with Donna Dees

Interview with Beth Sousa, Senior Policy and Strategy Advisor at Planned Parenthood

Interview with Ana Oliveria, CEO of New York Women’s Foundation

Meeting with former D1 Soccer player Carly Wetzel

The Teenage Perspective

Learning About Local Climate Activism With Keanu Arpels-Josiah

2023-2024

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by Mikhaella O. Joyce Ibe

by Cameron Fletcher

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